Israel declares emergency as Hezbollah fires thousands of rockets after IDF kills 274 in Lebanon

Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said Israel's air strikes in Lebanon on Monday have destroyed tens of thousands of Hezbollah rockets, adding to the most difficult week for the Iranian-backed movement since its creation. "Today is a significant peak. On this day we have taken out of order tens of thousands of rockets and precise munition. What Hezbollah has built over a period of 20 years since the second Lebanon War, is in fact being destroyed by the IDF," he said in a statement.

The Israeli military is preparing for the next stage of its operation in Lebanon after launching a wave of air strikes against Hezbollah targets on Monday morning, the military chief of the general staff Herzi Halevi said.

"Essentially, we are targeting combat infrastructure that Hezbollah has been building for the past 20 years. This is very significant. We are striking targets and preparing for the next phases," he said in a statement, giving no details but adding that he would "elaborate shortly".

Earlier, Israeli strikes on Monday killed more than 270 Lebanese in the deadliest barrage since the 2006



Israel-Hezbollah war as the Israeli military warned residents in southern and eastern Lebanon to evacuate ahead of a widening air campaign against Hezbollah. Thousands of Lebanese fled the south, and the main highway out of the southern port city of Sidon was jammed with cars heading toward Beirut in the biggest exodus since 2006. More than 1,000 people were wounded in the strikes — a staggering one-day toll for a country still reeling from a deadly attack on communication devices last week.

The death toll surpassed that of Beirut's devastating port explosion in 2020, when hundreds of tons of ammonium nitrate stored in a warehouse detonated, killing at least 218 people and wounding more than 6,000.

In a recorded message to Lebanese civilians, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged them to heed Israeli calls to evacuate, saying “take this warning seriously.” “Please get out of harm’s way now,” Netanyahu said. “Once our operation is finished, you can come back safely to your homes.” The Israeli military said Monday evening it had carried out a targeted strike in Beirut. It did not give details.